Former CBS News reporter Dan Raviv shares career anecdotes with Club members

Retired CBS Radio News anchor and reporter Dan Raviv quickly answered a question on his preference -- anchoring or field reporting? His choice: "on the scene" because "you can focus on one thing" and with field work on top stories, "you're part of history."

Raviv, who has covered major events in more than two dozen countries, spoke to the National Press Club Broadcast and Podcast Team, of which he is a member, on Thursday.

He shared anecdotes from his career, including cracking jokes with competitor Brian Williams while the two were between live shots from the just toppled Berlin Wall, or having Walter Cronkite shake and serve to him the first martini Raviv had ever tasted in Cronkite's suite in a Jerusalem hotel.  They were marking the agreement by the Israelis to accept President Jimmy Carter's proposal for peace with Egypt which they had both covered for CBS. 

He recounted his experience on 9/11 when, as the designated "sudden news" anchor for CBS Radio, he came on the air at 9:03 a.m. at the end of the normal hourly newscast, just as a second plane slammed into the World Trade Center tower. 

"The whole story changed" in that instant, he said. It was obvious that "it was terrorism." He stayed on the air until 5 p.m,, he said, and then, "That's when it hit me."  He said he headed home and kissed his family members.

Currently a columnist for Newsday, Raviv has also squeezed in time to write books, including being co-author five books on Israel's spies and its relations with the U.S., including a national bestseller, "Every Spy a Prince." He said writing for print gives him satisfaction of having something to hold, as opposed to a broadcast that is "gone" once it is aired.  

A foreign correspondent for 14 years, Raviv said he has continued to maintained a deep interest in international news.

The Broadcast and Podcast Team produces the Club's podcast series and works to weave broadcasting and podcasting into the activities of the Club.  It meets monthly, usually on the first Thursday of the month and is open to all members. To participate, contact chair Mark Hamrick at [email protected].